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CANUCKS ARMY GDT 37 – CANUCKS VS. BLUES (HNIC)
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Always90four
Dec 23, 2017, 18:46 EST
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Misery loves company.
Tonight’s matchup on Hockey Night in Canada features a Vancouver Canucks hockey team that continues to struggle and a St. Louis Blues club that has hit a rough patch. The Canucks are looking for sponsorship from Coppertone or Banana Boat after their goaltenders have incurred burns on the back of their necks from the red light routinely going off early and often. The Blues are ready to fly home after their Western Canadian road trip has resulted in a colossal thud.
One of these teams will buck the trend and the Canucks hope it’s their team. Once again, Brock Boeser will be asked to carry the team on his shoulders. Act surprised.
Let’s Do This!
WATCH / LISTEN / FACE-OFF
TV: CBC (Hockey Night in Canada Game #2)
RADIO: SN650
PUCK DROP: 7:00 PM
LINE COMBINATIONS
So Nic Dowd likes the penalties. The Canucks haven’t been very good at killing his penalties so re-inserting Nikolay Goldobin into the lineup seems like a good idea. Jake Virtanen is figuring his game out and if he’s still with the Sedins that should continue. Does Ben Hutton make it back into the lineup tonight? If so, it’s tough to say who he replaces. Signs are pointing to Troy Stecher which is unfortunate.
If Erik Gudbranson is getting traded, Vancouver will need to play him a ton before the roster freeze is lifted.
Anders Nilsson is my pick to start. It might not matter though, we could see both goalies tonight.
Vancouver Canucks lines courtesy of Dailyfaceoff.com:
No apparent lineup news out of Blues camp. Brayden Schenn will headline this Blues team and Vladimir Tarasenko is ready to give the Canucks fits. Jay Bouwmeester, Carl Gunnarsson, Jaden Schwartz and Sammy Blais are all injured. Gunnarsson could be a game-time decision.
Jake Allen looks to be the likely starter.
St. Louis Blues lines courtesy of Dailyfaceoff.com:
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
  • Christmas is a time for giving and Brock Boeser would like nothing more than to give Canucks fans a goal to remember before the holidays. If he does, he’ll activate a bonus in his contract and the Canucks will give HIM a gift of $212,500 for hitting the 20-goal plateau. Apparently, if you’re good all year, Santa gives pretty good gifts.
  • Speaking of giving, the Canucks have given 42 goals to their opponents in December, good for 2nd most in the league only behind the Islanders. If anyone wants this month to be over, it’s Travis Green. His goaltenders have regressed, his defense has been porous and the PK has slid, it’s at 71% this month if anyone cares.
  • Henrik the Helper – Henrik Sedin has also been in a giving mood this month with 11 assists, two back of Jakub Voracek for the top spot in the league in December. If the Canucks were completely healthy, Henrik might have that number a bit higher.
  • Goaltending has not been Vancouver’s strong suit lately with both goalies posting a sub-900 save percentage. Not good. There have been some ugly, forgettable goals to go with that as well. This team isn’t a playoff contender as of this morning but if they want to be, at all, they’ll need some support between the pipes. Of course, that’s not all on the goalies, the defense hasn’t been rock solid either.
  • Derrick Pouliot is not a fan of get-togethers it seems. He likes low-event meetings. Of all the defensemen playing 200 minutes or more this season, Pouliot has the 15th lowest Corsi Against with 191. Vancouver’s defense isn’t all bad news and sending away Andrey Pedan looks more and more like a good move. Thanks, Pittsburgh!
THE TWITTER TAKE
That helmet looks huge on him, doesn’t it? His head to helmet ratio is way off.
MY 94 CENTS
Every fiber of my being says the Canucks get plunked in this one. There isn’t any reason to suggest otherwise. A loss is OK, though. Brock Boeser is still the story and now Jake Virtanen seems to be catching on. Do they actually flip the script and go into Christmas with a monster win? Yes, I think they do.
It doesn’t even matter if I’m wrong, it’s been a rough week for the Vancity crew.
OVER / UNDER
Canucks shots (+/- 35.5)     Three of the last four games for Vancouver have resulted in 40 shots for (OK, 39 vs. MTL). High event hockey before the break bodes well for this evening. Take the over.
Canucks PP% (+/- 50%)     December has been good to the Canucks with the man-advantage. That being said, most of it is due to Brock Boeser. The Blues have only allowed two PPG in 12 games this month. It’s the unstoppable force vs. the immovable object. The force is strong with this one, take the over.
“The Pint is your home for all things game day. Come down for game day specials like $5 mugs of bud and bud light and get 20% off food if you’re a season ticket holders”

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